Chapter 83: An Opponent That Must Be Defeated
"It's all nonsense, the team has no problem at all. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ļ½ļ½ļ½Uļ½Eć info" In response to a reporter's question, team manager Isiah Thomas replied with righteous words.
"Infighting, how is it possible, it's April, and now we're all thinking about hitting the playoffs." Lehi was in front of reporters, his face full of sincerity.
In fact, the Knicks have been really not peaceful in the past two days, and Coach Herb Williams was also taken aback, and Lehi had quarreled with people during the previous training, and was yelled at by his teammates that he was just a rookie.
Fortunately, Li Hai admitted that he was a rookie and accepted the punishment without complaint, but the atmosphere inside was slightly changed because of the two scenes.
Lehi is also angry, Coach Williams can't control those players at all, and the Knicks' defense has been getting worse and worse recently, if he can't even get into the playoffs, he will definitely not be reconciled.
The tantrum is just a vent, in fact, if he had performed better in these games, he would not have been so miserable.
He's made great strides this season, but not to the point of dominating the game.
After losing his temper and complaining to his girlfriend on the phone at night, Lehi also sobered up a lot, the Knicks lineup changes frequently, and the interior line has not been high, if the players are not more active, it will really be the end of it.
On April 1, they host the New Jersey Nets.
The Nets have also had a miserable time, with Richard Jefferson not playing well since ruptured ligament in his left wrist, and they, like the Knicks, are fighting for a playoff ticket.
Because of Richard Jefferson's injury, the Nets moved Vince Carter from the No. 2 to the No. 3 spot.
At the start of the game, the Nets won the jump ball and took the lead in attacking.
Kidd dribbled the ball to the 45-degree three-point line and gave it directly to Carter on the front basket.
Carter caught the ball sideways, made a tentative step towards Lehi, and then stepped directly to Lehi's side, pulled it up, and hit a two-point shot.
Simple movements are all based on physical fitness and shooting accuracy.
This was somewhat similar to that of his cousin McGrady, and Lehi had slowed down a little by the time he reached out to interfere.
The Knicks' first shot, completed by Crawford, his shot was even simpler than Carter's, he shot the moment he received the pass, and he didn't think about anything else at all, and the three-point shot was also a hit.
With a player like Crawford, the team will be worried when it is accurate, and only the Knicks will have a chill in their hearts when they are not allowed.
The Nets' second offense was handed over to Carter again, and they didn't have a good time during this time, and Nets head coach Lawrence Frank also let Carter take on the responsibility of offense.
The Nets traded Carter this season to make him the team's strongest offensive force.
Carter drew half a circle in front of Lehi with his arm with the basketball, and then squeezed to Lehi's side with a cat waist, rushing to the side of the defender or using body contact to make a stop-and-go jump shot, which was very difficult to defend.
But Lehi had the experience of the first goal, and this time he jumped a little earlier, and there were defenders behind him in the half-court position.
Lehi grabbed Enlightenment's arm and stopped in front of Carter, and the basketball arced in the air and smashed into the basket.
The Knicks picked up the rebound and started, Lehi received the ball on the side and accelerated to the bottom line, Carter stopped but didn't expect Lehi's speed to be so fast, and was squeezed by Lehi in one step, jumping up is abusing the basket, and also caused Nenad Kostic's foul, 2+1.
was violently deducted in front of him by a rookie, Carter was a little unable to hang on face, and he also wanted to get back face.
Lehi's kraft candy-style defense did not give the opponent a chance to dunk, which made Carter very unhappy.
As most of the time, the Knicks played well on the outside, and the inside play was average, but fortunately, the Nets couldn't do it on the inside, and the Knicks led by 5 points in the first quarter.
But the good times didn't last long, and the Nets bench interior Clifford Robinson performed vigorously and chased the score back with the bench lineup.
By halftime, the Nets had a one-point lead.
As a difficult brother in the East and a direct opponent to enter the playoffs, both teams want to win this game.
At half-time, the managers of both sides were also constantly fierce players.
"Brothers, Carter handed it over to me, and that's all I have to say." Lehi is colorful.
Marbury laughed: "I'm going to score more points than Kidd anyway, it all cheers me up, and we can't drop a game this month, you know." ā
Marbury has not liked to motivate his teammates for some reason in recent years, and this season because of the arrival of Lehi, he has also shown the momentum of being the boss.
At the beginning of the second half, Marbury also showed his ability, and the first ball went inside to make a foul.
When it was the Nets' turn to attack, Carter ran without the ball and used his teammates' cover to get a chance to shoot, Lehi rushed up and jumped up with all his strength to interfere, but Carter let him lean on him, and the referee's whistle sounded immediately.
After the intermission, Carter obviously did not intend to be angry with Lehi, a "junior", he adjusted his mentality, regarded Lehi as a real opponent, and competed on the premise of that team's victory.
Not to be outdone, Li Hai also used his teammates to cover, slipped the bottom line to get the opportunity to shoot, and scored 2 points with a decisive shot.
Then Kidd and Crawford each missed shots, and the Nets got a chance to break quickly, and Carter caused Lehi's foul again, "Boy, you can't stop me next." ā
"yes, I'm not demanding, just win the game."
After the adjustment, Carter was even more Lehi, but fortunately, Lehai did not foul in the first half and was not affected too much by the foul in the third quarter.
It would be nice to have a big fight with Carter on both ends of the floor, but the Knicks aren't on his team right now.
The most important thing Lehi needs to do now is to limit Carter and help the team win.
He resisted the desire to compete with the strong, and constantly made physical contact with Carter, so that the other party never tired of it.
Defense isn't a one-to-two thing to solve problems, and Lehi constantly reminds himself to focus.
Marbury hit a good shot in this quarter, and Lehi didn't need to be distracted.
He's already familiar with the Nets' offensive routine, and in addition to the fast break, he usually lets Carter run without the ball to catch the ball, or just go through his hands.
Just when Carter slipped the baseline again, Lehi accelerated ahead of time to bypass Kostic who blocked people, and Jacqui Vaughn, a member of the basketball team on the outside, didn't have time to react, and subconsciously hit the ball and passed it to the ground.
As soon as Lehi stretched out his long arm, he intercepted the ball and flicked it forward, and then the whole person ran wildly.